


Shovel Talk Series

by Lrabbithole



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alex and Winn brotp, F/F, Gen, Maggie and M'gann friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-14
Updated: 2016-12-21
Packaged: 2018-09-08 11:10:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,986
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8842408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lrabbithole/pseuds/Lrabbithole
Summary: Alex's family and friends have a few words with Maggie. None of the conversations go the way Maggie expected them to.





	1. Kara

1\. Kara  
  
  
Maggie had just stepped out of the Alien bar she considered a home and was about to start her bike when someone called her name. She didn't recognize the voice immediately, but as soon as she turned around the blonde hair and thick glasses brought a smile to her face.

She had heard enough about Alex's little sister to feel like she already knew Kara, even if they had only seen each other once.

"Hey Kara! You meeting Alex at the bar?"

"I was looking for you, actually."

A raised eyebrow showed Maggie's surprise. It was quickly replaced by a sense of dread. Maggie knew Alex was safe and sound working at the DEO. She knew because she had just gotten a text from the women she had started dating. So there was only one other reason Kara could be looking for her, and that was to warn her off Alex.

Maggie was not stupid, quite the opposite. She prided herself on her observation skills so the tension radiating from Kara that time they met had been obvious to her, she just decided to ignore it then. And ok, maybe you didn't need to be a detective to realize Kara was not happy with her, the forced smile had not been discreet at all, Kara probably didn't mean for it to be. And Maggie hated it. She knew how important Kara was to Alex and the last thing she wanted was to not get along with her.

But she couldn't take back what she had done. She wasn't even sure she would if she had the chance. Even if she hated knowing how much she had hurt Alex, even if right now the last thing she wanted was to waste any minute she could share with Alex, back then it was the best decision. Even if she didn't regret it, she couldn't blame Kara for holding a grudge because she had hurt Alex. She tried to play it casual, anyway.

"Oh...Ok. is something wrong?"

"No, nothing is wrong. Alex told me you two are dating and I was wondering if I could have a word with you."

Kara's words only confirmed what Maggie already expected. Even if Kara looked friendly and was even smiling warmly at her, Maggie braced herself for what was about to come. If Kara needed to get the shovel talk out of her system, Maggie was happy to let her do it. She would prove to her just how much she cared about Alex with time.

"Sure, should we head inside for a drink or something." She knew Kara didn't drink, but Maggie would need a couple drinks to survive what she expected to be a complete tear down by the younger Danvers.

Kara's demeanor changed immediately, she looked almost panicked at the idea of going back inside.

"No! no, It's fine, It won't take long. No need to go back inside."

Maggie made a mental note to find out what was up. Even if Kara didn't like her, she was still kind of her sister-in-law so she would make sure the regular patrons in the bar knew to not bother her.

"Ok. I'm all ears then," said Maggie while leaning back on her bike. Trying to project an air of casualness she wasn't actually feeling at the moment.

"Right. I...ummm... Just wanted to thank you."

Ok, that was not what Maggie was expecting. The shy smile, the warm eyes, and certainly not a thank you. Maybe it was a trick, she thought. So instead of getting her guard down Maggie crossed her arms over her chest before answering.

"I don't understand. Why are you thanking me?"

Kara just smiled and moved closer, almost as if she wanted to hug Maggie but thought better of it at the last moment. "Thank you for making my sister so happy. She is the most important person in the world to me, and the only thing I've ever wanted is for her to find happiness."

Maggie felt her throat get dry. This was probably even worse than a shovel talk. She could deal with Kara being angry, even with Kara hating her. But this was too much pressure. She liked Alex, so much, and she really wanted things to work between them. But what if they didn't. More often than not, things didn't work out and couples fell apart. Now not only she had to worry about hurting Alex, but also about this new knowledge of Kara's expectations.

And maybe Maggie's poker face wasn't as good as she thought it was because Kara rushed to reassure her.

"Don't panic. I know you two are just starting and that a lot of things could go wrong, like in any relationship. But even if things don't work between you two, you have already helped Alex open up, and accept that she deserves to look for her happiness just as much as anyone else."

Maggie only nodded. She wouldn't admit it, but those words were just what she needed to hear. She hoped to share her life with Alex for a long time, but if she didn't, at least she hoped to be able to leave a positive mark on her life.

"I don't know how much Alex has told you about us," Kara continued. "But my sister has sacrificed her own happiness pretty much her whole life, she has always put other people's feelings ahead of hers. I'm just thankful because thanks to you she dared to pursue her own happiness."

Kara's words were reassuring, and Maggie did feel a weight getting off her shoulders. But she still felt her mouth dry, this time because she knew how true everything Kara had said was and she still couldn't get her mind around the impact she had on Alex. Strong, smart, beautiful Alex, that always thought the best of her. She wanted to deny it, wanted to tell Kara she hadn't done anything, Alex would have gotten there with or without her. But she couldn't.

"I really didn't do much," she said instead.

"You did enough. I'm happy she has someone like you in her life."

Maggie could only nod and let herself be surrounded by strong arms and blonde hair. And if Kara heard the small, choked sob that came out of Maggie, she had the grace to ignore it.


	2. J'onn

2\. J'onn  
  
Maggie felt almost as comfortable at the DEO as she did at her own precinct. Alex and her worked together often and when one of them got hurt the DEO infirmary was always their meeting point. Even when they weren't working together, nobody had a problem with her hanging around the building, they were used to it by now.  
  
It was Friday, and there was nothing Maggie wanted more than to get home, but she was waiting for Alex to finish a report on their last case so they could both go home together for a nice evening of pasta, wine and movies. It seemed like it would take Alex at least another half an hour to be done, probably more if Maggie keep distracting her, so Maggie decided to step out into the DEO balcony to wait and let her girlfriend finish working in peace.

She had to admit the view was great and there was something relaxing about watching the city buzz with life from afar. Maggie was so lost in her own thoughts she didn't realize someone had joined her in the balcony until they were standing right besides her. The man in standard DEO tactical gear stared out into the city too; if he realized Maggie was openly staring at him, he didn't show it.

Maggie had met J'onn briefly before. Always in the middle of one crisis or another. She had heard about him from Alex too, but it seemed like their interactions were mostly limited to their time together at the DEO. They hadn't shared game nights or drinking outings like they had with the rest of Alex's friends. If she had to be honest, he kind of intimidated her a little. Or maybe more than a little, she was tempted to just go back inside and look for Winn or Vasquez to keep her company while she waited.

Before she could make a decision, J'onn's voice stopped her. "Human nature has always fascinated me," he said with his eyes not losing its focus on the city in front of them. Maggie wasn't even sure if he was talking to her, but it just seemed rude to ignore him.

"When I first got to Earth, humans seemed so primitive, turning to violence so easily. When I learned about the horrors of war It reminded me too much of what White Martians had done to us. I decided to hide, to stay as far away as possible from them."

Maggie still didn't know where the conversation was going, but she couldn't help but become entranced by J'onn's words. She was almost afraid of disrupting the solemn atmosphere, but she has never been one to stay quiet for long.

"What changed?"

Thankfully J'onn doesn't seems bothered by the interruption. Quite the opposite. He finally turns around to face her, and small smile tugging at his lips.

"I met a good human. Someone brave and compassionate that offered me his friendship without hesitation. He showed me that humanity has a good side, a side worth protecting."

Maggie nods slowly, smiling at J'onn in return. When J'onn rests his arm on her shoulder, it feels surprisingly familiar.

"His name was Jeremiah Danvers. I promised him I would take care of his daughters."

Maggie wants to pat herself on the back for not showing surprise at his words. Alex had talked extensively about her dad's disappearance, about finding out he wasn't dead like they initially thought. She wondered how J'onn fit on all of this, but knew this wasn't the time nor the place, nor the person she should ask.

What was clear though, was that this man was the closest thing to meeting Alex's dad she would get, at least for now. And instead of being terrified of his judgment, she found herself happy to reassure him.

"You don't have to protect Alex from me."

The smile on the man in front of her got bigger, even if his eyes showed sadness.

"I know. You remind me a lot of Jeremiah, Detective Sawyer. You are just as compassionate and selfless. I can't imagine a better match for Alex."

Maggie had no answer for his kind words. Once more surprised by how welcoming Alex weird family was to her. J'onn saved her from having to say anything, he just gives her shoulder a squeeze and turns around to leave.

"Thank you, Director Henshaw," Magie finally manages to mumble.

J'onn keeps walking but turns his head around to speak over his shoulder.

"You can call me J'onn."


	3. Winn

3\. Winn

Maggie was awful at video games. Growing up she had always been more into running around outside, playing soccer and baseball or simply going out to get ice cream with her friends. The huge controller in her hands, full of lights and buttons looked as complicated to her as the control panel of a spaceship.

Winn tried to help her, to teach her, he really did, but somehow she always ended up pushing the button for shoot when she meant to dodge, or jump when she wanted to shoot. She couldn't blame him for the groan he let out when her character on-screen killed him for a third time instead of going after their opponent.

She was ready for a polite dismissal sure he would prefer to play alone and stop losing, but to her surprise he just put the controller on the table in front of him and scratched his head before looking at her with a lopsided grin.

"Let's...switch games. I was obviously wrong about police skills like shooting translating to videogames. Maybe, a racing game?"

Maggie shrugged, she didn't expect a change of game to help her magically get better. But she was happy to indulge him, he seemed actually excited to be able to teach her even if she keep failing time after time. The fact she was the only one who was still willing to play with him and keep listening to his long rambles about the games they were playing probably helped his patience.

And hey, nobody could say she didn't try. She tried as hard as she could, she stood up, yelled at the TV screen, smashed the buttons with all her strength and energy, even if she could see Winn wincing that one time she almost dropped the controller. She was determined to, if not win, at least not suck as much.

Everyone had moved on from the living room a couple hours before. Making fun of her probably lost its charm after the hundredth time her on-screen character died. Alex, James and Kara had prefered to head to the kitchen and talk. She missed the small peck she would get on the cheek from Alex every time she died in the game, but was happy to see Alex stealing glances and smiling at her regularly from the other side of the apartment.

Maggie turned her attention back to Winn, who was on the middle of setting up another game.

"This is a fighting game, not as much strategy required. Just try to hit me and we should be good."

"Ok. I should be able to do that."

"Yeah...sure," snorted Winn. "I may not be able to beat you up in real life, but I'm going to kick your ass right now."

Maggie laughed it off, bumped his shoulder with hers while picking up the controller again. "Wow, I didn't know you wanted to beat me up."

"Only if you hurt Alex," the words were spoken softly, almost shyly. His eyes finding hers just for a second before being averted quickly to look at the screen.

It was an innocent comment but for some reason it hit close to home. Not that Maggie thought Winn would actually beat her up, to be honest he squirmed in his seat every time Alex even looked at him. Maggie felt hurt though. Even if they hadn't know each other for long, Winn was always friendly and the last person she expected to ever want to beat anyone up.

She tried to not show how his words affected her, but it was obvious the sharp tone of her voice gave her away when Winn winced at her words. "Where did that come from, dude?"

He kept fidgeting with the controller in his hand and refusing to met her eyes. "I don't know, It just seems like my duty to tell you."

Maggie didn't respond well to threats, her gut reaction was to get defensive and shut out Winn. She took a deep breath instead. She had grown to appreciate Winn's boyish charm over the weeks they had know each other and didn't want to ruin everybody's night by getting mad at him.

"Good thing I can beat you up if you ever try. So unless you have a videogame about a shovel, I think I'm safe."

"Yeah...I should have thought that threat trough to be honest."

After a short silence Winn turned towards her with a big grin in his face. Maggie was thrown off by the sudden change in attitude.

"Oh! Oh! I know! I can hack you and publish all your embarrassing pictures...or block your credit cards when you are about to pay. Or I'm pretty sure I could delete your whole life and make it as if you never existed using the DEO mainframe access to the government database."

A throaty laugh escaped Maggie. She couldn't stay mad when the man in front of her was practically jumping in his seat, eyes as big as plates, looking at her like a 6 year old would look at santa.

"You realize all those things you just mentioned are illegal and I'm a cop, right? I could have your arrested for just saying you can do that."

She could see the wheels turning in his mind, his eyes slowly closing and his grin becoming strained. His hands moved suddenly, gripping both of her shoulders and the panic seemed real in his voice when he pretty much yelled his next words.

"Oh my god! Don't arrest me! I'm too pretty for jail."

She saw Alex, Kara and James turn their way of of the corner of her eyes. She winked at them to reassure them everything was fine and saw them turn back around, rolling their eyes at Winn’s antics. 

All of them except Alex, who looked ready to come barging in the living room to defend Maggie's honor. Even if she was too far away to hear what they were talking about.

Maggie smiled at her, mouthed "everything is fine" and blew her a kiss from her spot on the couch. She was tempted to mouth "I love you", but the first time she said those words to Alex needed to be more special than that. Alex smiled back and turned around to swat Kara on the arm over something or another.

With the attention away from them she was free to answer Winn. She grabbed his hands and moved them away from her shoulders while looking directly at him with a big smirk on her face. 

"Of course I won't. Who would teach me to play if I do?"

He relaxed at her words but Maggie knew they needed to at least pretend to get back to the game if they didn't want to be interrupted by the others. And to be honest Maggie was curious about this surprising protective nature from Winn. She never imagined we would care for Alex enough to try ant threaten her.

"Are we playing or not Schott? I feel like I'm getting the hang of this."

He realized her intentions easily and put on a show too. Standing up and punctuating every one of this words with a lot of arm movements and pointing.

"Oh! You. Are. Going. Down. Detective."

She shook her head at him but couldn't help the big smile. 

"I can’t wait to tell Alex how much you love her,” said Maggie with a teasing sing-sang voice. 

 

“Don’t you dare! She will kill me...no...worse...she is going to torture me and bring me pain with her index finger. I’m too pretty to suffer!”

“Ok...ok...Your secret is safe with me. I don’t see why you are so afraid though, I can assure you her index finger has never brought me pain.” 

“Uggh.. I didn’t need to know that.”

After that they went back to their game and Maggie though the topic was behind them, until she felt him moving closer to her on the couch his eyes going back and forth between the kitchen and the TV.

“You know, I was Kara’s friend first but Alex has become really important for me too,” he paused, choosing to take a big gulp of beer before speaking again.

“I grew up in foster care after my dad...was sent to…to..jail. For murder,” he paused again looking briefly at her before taking another sip of his beer. Maggie could tell the conversation had turned serious so she didn’t dare to interrupt him. 

“It’s hard to feel part of a family when you grow up surrounded by a bunch of strangers. It wasn’t until I meet Kara and Alex that I felt like part of a family again. They always invite me over for Thanksgiving and make sure there’s a Christmas Stocking with my name under the fireplace.” 

“That sounds like them.”

“Yeah...Alex...she knew I wanted to work for the DEO. She vouched for me, talked J’onn into giving me a chance. I just...I thought you should know that.”

He moved away again, this time not meeting her eye. Maggie didn’t say anything, There was no need to. She could understand Winn perfectly because with only a few months of dating Alex she already felt like part of their little family. If she had to get one of the NCPD techs to encrypt all of her embarrassing pictures, just in case, it would be worth it if she got to be part of this crazy but amazing family.


	4. M'gann

M’gann didn’t have friends. Not really. 300 hundred years living on Earth and she never felt close enough to anyone to call them friends. It was her own choice though, White Martians destroyed everything they touched, it was better for everyone if she just keep to herself. 

J’onn had tried to get close to her, and look at how that had worked out. She ended up almost destroying everything he is, everything he believes in, and now he hates her. Staying away was better, for them and for her. 

Probably the closest she had come to having friends was working as a bartender at the Alien bar. Since she found the place it had become a space of solace, a chance to share a home with other aliens just like her. Sure, not all of them belonged to a genocidal race, but when she looked into their eyes she could see a lot of them were running from something, just like her. 

Most aliens hadn’t left their home planets out of choice, there was always a need to run, hide or start again behind their arrival on earth. She could empathize with that. As for humans, well, she had come to appreciate them with time, especially the humans that found a refuge next to aliens. 

From all the regular patrons, Maggie Sawyer was probably her favorite. The detective didn’t talk much; she would walk into the bar, choose a table in the corner and order a few drinks. She would smile at M’gann and give her a thank you but nothing more. She didn’t try to hit on her, like most of the male customers did, and she didn’t assume M’gann was there to listen to any and all of their complains, she just minded her own business but was always ready to help if needed. 

If two rowdy aliens started trouble, Maggie Sawyer was there, ready to show her badge and make them leave before they gave too much trouble. If someone was too drunk to get home she wouldn’t hesitate to call them a cab, walk them to it and give the driver some money to take them home. If she was there by the time they were closing, Maggie would help pick up empty bottles from the tables while M’gann cleaned.

She did all that wanting nothing in return. M’gann gave her some free shots and beer anyway. Sometimes she even sat with her when she wanted to rest from work for five minutes. If it was a beer day, most of them where, they would chat for a while, never about anything too important. Mostly about Maggie’s latest date or how her niece had done some new endearing thing.

If it was a shot of bourbon day, they just sat in silence. Maggie drinking and M’gann serving her and watching, not saying anything until Maggie did. Those days conversation was usually about some sexist police officer getting on Maggie’s nerves, or a case that hit too close to home. Tequila was reserved for the really, really crappy days. Like the time a kid died from a stray bullet during a NCPD operation. Sometimes, M’gann was able to know what kind of day it was with just seeing Maggie walk in, by the time the detective made it to the bar there would already be a drink waiting for her. 

Lately, she always needed to have two beers ready whenever she spotted Maggie. The detective was more often than not waiting for a certain DEO agent. In all the time Maggie had been a regular customer at the bar, she had never brought someone along with her. Unless they counted Darla...but that was different. The Roltikon needed a job, and M’gann had promised to help out a fellow alien in need, that was the only reason Maggie took the blonde there.

M’gann had heard Maggie complaining about a breakup enough times to know there had been important people in her life before, but never important enough to take to her special place. No matter how in love she said she was, there was a part of Maggie that was always cautious, always reluctant to share that last part of herself. Or at least that’s how it looked to M’gann. She even asked her once, offhandedly, when was she going to meet one of her girlfriends. “I don’t think any of my girlfriends would understand the appeal of this place,” she had answered. 

Alex had become the exception to that rule. Of course, M’gann knew they weren’t dating when Maggie took the agent to the bar for the first time. But just the fact that she had trusted the other woman enough to take her there said a lot. Alex beating information out of one of her regulars a few days later just showed the feeling was mutual. 

Since then, she had watched both of them. Maggie still visited the bar on her own on occasion, but it had become more and more common to see her along the taller brunette. They played pool, they shared drinks, they laughed together and, lately, they kissed. She wasn’t surprised when the last one started happening, for weeks they had looked at each other with barely hidden adoration. 

What did surprise M’gann was her own protective reaction. The first thought on her mind when she saw Maggie smiling at Alex after a kiss was “she better not hurt her.” And ok, maybe Maggie was the closest thing she had to a friend, even if said friendship consisted mostly of M’gann pouring drinks for her, but she knew the kind of person Maggie Sawyer was, and if she ever needed help the detective would be the first in line, she wasn’t sure if Maggie had anyone she could say the same about. 

She also knew Alex, not much, but on the few interactions they’ve had the DEO agent had impressed her. Determined was the first word that came to mind. She had also seen first hand how much Alex worried about the people she cared about, and hopefully Maggie was now on that list. There really wasn’t any reason for her to be worried, she could see the love between the two women; still, she couldn’t help but feel obligated to protect her friend. She kept watching them from the bar, waiting for a chance to step in and have a few words with Alex when the chance presented itself. 

When she saw Alex leave Maggie at their table and start walking towards the bar, M’gann was quick to get two beers of their favorite brand ready to go on top of the counter. 

“Thank you, M’gann,” Alex said with a big smile while grabbing the beers from the counter. “I guess being predictable has it’s advantages.”

“Not predictable, I just know my favorite customers orders.”

“Oh! Am I one of your favorites?” Alex asked with surprise on her voice. M’gann had always been nice to her, but she assumed that was just how she treated all patrons.

“You are getting there, and Maggie has been for a long time,” Alex nodded in understanding, starting to turn around to go back to the table.

“Wait.”   
The words left M’gann mouth before she could stop them but with Alex looking at her expectantly she started to second guess herself, unsure of how the Agent how react to her words or if Maggie would get mad at her interference. 

“I may be overstepping my boundaries here, but I’ve seen how close Maggie and you have become.”

“Yeah, we have.”

“Yeah, I just...have known Maggie for a while now. She has a big heart and sadly I’ve seen that heart be abused more than once. I don’t want to see her hurt again.”

“I would never hurt her.”

“I know you would never want to hurt her, that doesn’t mean you won’t. Sometimes we hurt people without wanting to, sometimes we hurt people trying to protect them, or ourselves. The only thing I’m asking from you is to stop and take a death breath before you say or do anything, that simple action can prevent a lot of pain.”

“OK, I will. I promise.”

“Good. Thank you. I would hate to have to start giving you the cheap alcohol instead of your usual,” said M’gann with a wink. Before Alex could react the Martian had left to tend to another customer.

Alex walked back to the table thinking about M’gann’s words, she appreciated the concern. It was nice to know someone else cared about Maggie, but she was a little hurt at the implication she could hurt the woman she loved so much. It was possible, of course, Alex was not naive and knew that M’gann was right, but her words just made her determined to prove her wrong. 

Apparently her thoughts were obvious on her face, because as soon as she handed the beer to Maggie, the detective looked at her with questioning eyes and her usual head tilt. 

“Everything OK?”

“Yeah...Is just...I think..I think M’gann just gave me the shovel talk,” the bemused expression on Alex face morphed quickly into panic. “Oh my God! Have any of my friends done that to you?”

Maggie laughed, getting on tiptoes to give Alex a quick peck on the lips. 

“Don’t worry, babe. Your friends haven’t been anything but welcoming to me.”


End file.
